Working memory is your ability to categorise and remember figures, information and details within a short period of time. If somebody asked you to multiply 765 by 10, and you did so without having to write those numbers down, that's using your working memory.

Remembering if you once threw up on somebody at a party in the late '90s is a far different beast, and requires you using your long-term memory.

So when researchers decided to test what effects your running footwear had on your memory, they're really only talking about the last 10 or 15 seconds of your life.

To test their theory, the researchers enrolled 72 participants and split them up into two groups – one group would run barefoot at their own pace for 16 minutes, and the other would run in shoes, again at their own pace, for the same amount of time.

Both groups had their working memory tested before and after the run.

The results were startling – the group who ran with nothing between their feet and the ground increased their working memory by 16 percent from the baseline, while those with shoes on found no magical increase.

According to Dr Ross Alloway, one of the lead authors of the study, this is because barefoot running provides your brain with incredibly more "feedback", effectively warming it up for the later memory test.

"The little things often have the greatest impact. This research shows us that we can realise our cognitive potential and enjoy ourselves at the same time," says Alloway.

"If we take off our shoes and go for a run, we can finish smarter than when we started."

Dr Tracy Alloway, who also co-authored the study (and, for those wondering, is Dr Ross' wife) says that by running barefoot people could see improvements in their performance at school, work and at home.

"Working memory is increasingly recognised as a crucial cognitive skill, and these findings are great news for people looking for a fun way to boost their working memory," says Alloway.

The experiment is the first in the world to demonstrate that running barefoot leads to better mental performance compared to running in shoes.